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I've been lifting heavy and hard for roughly a year now, and raised all of my maxes significantly. But within the last few months, I've hit a hard plateau on my bench press at 200/205. I've tried multiple different programs to break though it, but I always end up failing sets around this weight. Programs attempted thus far: 1. Stronglifts 5x5 - This is where I started, and this got me to about 150-160. 2. Effortless Superhuman (Tim Ferris, 4 Hour Body) - This worked well up until I hit the 200/205 plateau. Despite multiple resets, I couldn't break it. 3. Eating the Elephant (Tim Ferris, 4 Hour Body) - This program is supposed to be designed specifically to break bench press plateaus, but I still failed at the 200/205. My diet for roughly 6 months has been Tim Ferris's "Slow Carb Diet," to include the Saturday cheat days, and extra protein from whey protein powder + water shakes to support muscle growth. The only area I already know I struggle with is sleep, as I often times will only average 5 hours a night. I've come a long way in my journey, but I'm not satisfied, and I refuse to let 200 be my max when I know there are people out there lifting triple that or more. Any and all help would be appreciated, I can take the criticism if anyone knows something I'm doing wrong or a program that would be helpful.

I am essentially a beginner and have been doing the 5x5 Stronglifts program for a couple of months. I've hit a bit of a plateau with my overhead press, I'm close to plateauing with my bench press however, I have more to go with my squats and deadlifts. Because I'm plateauing or close to it on a couple of exercises, I have some questions. I have heard of a few things to improve my strength, do you have a preference for one of these (or another preferred option)? deloading then having a run at increasing again 50 reps (any number of sets, just reach 50) at 80% 5x5 plateau (another number was given in relation to my 1RM but I don't know my 1RM, I do know this other number) supersets pyramids Do I wait for everything to plateau before using any of the above options or do I just start adding volume to an exercise as soon as it plateaus and leave the others until they plateau? Is there anything else I should consider or know about? Thanks

Long time no post, but the short version is: I dropped from 67 kg to 59 over the summer, carefully bulked to 62, maintained over the holidays consistently at 62-63 kg. I was planning to cut to 57 from end of January to mid-March so I could bulk a bit before the summer, but I've had to say bye-bye to that plan because nothing is happening. If anything, my weight is increasing - this morning I weighed 64, and almost fainted and/or cried because I can't recall the last time I weighed that much. I don't understand. I've been told time and time again that CICO works, and it did work for me in the past, though slower than it should have. This time, nothing. According to both IIFYM calculator and my math, my TDEE is around 2000, with 2-3 times lifting and 2 cardio (taekwon-do) per week. I set my daily calories to 1500, made sure I get around/close to 1 gr protein per lbs of body weight, waited. Waited some more, knowing my body was slow to realize what's up. A month. Nothing. At some point I tweaked my macros to more fat and less carbs (except on lifting days), which didn't help, even though I was in ketosis (I knew by the 'oh my god I need caaaarbs' zombie state by day two). And I mean, I didn't even get the initial drop of water weight that usually happens at the start of any diet. Recently (about two weeks ago) I switched to a model where I eat sliiightly over maintenance (2100 cals) on lifting days but am at 1400 cals on other days, thinking maybe my metabolism got somehow stuck because of the constant deficit (which shouldn't happen anyway). I'm lost, I don't know what the hap is f*ckening. I've done this before, so I know the drill - no unlogged snacking or 'accidental' calories from drinks etc., no underestimating the amount of food I eat (I make most of my meals so I know what and how much is in it, and the occasional lunch I eat at uni still has the calories and macros listed and I've got pretty good at guesstimating the amount), nothing like that. There have been days when I've eaten whatever and haven't logged, but that's been about once per three weeks and I don't eat an entire cow even then. I just got a bunch of blood tests taken and the doctor said my thyroid etc. are fine; I'm not on any new medication (aka, that I wasn't on during my marathon cut on summer) that cause weight gain. I did start ADD meds this week*, and while many people with the med say it's made them lose weight, sometimes crazy amounts (like, one pound per day), that hasn't helped me either. (*for actual ADD, I don't take regulated stimulants for weight loss. I'm desperate but not stupid.) And, for added weirdness, I'm just returning from a two-week semi training break due to weird back issue, where I trained only once a week, so my weight should've increased, right? Nope, still same. Does anyone have any idea what is going on? My maintenance can't be 1400 cals/day, that's almost my BMR. I haven't lost inches either, I take measurements. But I really need to cut fat before I can build more muscle, my BF% is 25(my own estimation)-26.9(my scale), that's way too high and I hate all this fluff around my body. I eat about 75% clean (paleo + dairy), my "sins" consist mostly of rice porridge with milk, chocolate and Sodastream light soda.

I thought I would put this topic out there (it likely already exists, but no matter) since I tend to hit this level and struggle to beat it every time. The longer it takes you to recognise you're fighting this epic boss, the more damage it does, and the harder it is to respawn. I know this because I have respawned so.many.times. There is victory in coming back and pressing "start" again, however. And sometimes it doesn't hurt to look up a walkthrough (like the NF forums and articles) to help you out when fighting this evil. So I'm curious to hear from other rebels about how they deal with this situation. It goes something like this: you've committed yourself to healthy eating and a great fitness regime. You've lost/gained weight and are moving closer to your goal, you're proud of your achievements and heading in the right direction. Life is great! Then something happens. Be it a life event, a gradual change, or something else, you lose your momentum and begin to regress. You stop keeping track of what and how much you're eating. The fitness commitment decreases and then stops altogether. All that awesome progress you made starts to dissipate and suddenly you're heading in the complete wrong direction. As I said, time is of the essence in this fight. Sometimes it has taken me mere weeks, other times months to years to realise I'm in the trenches, to put up a defense and stop the damage before I can start heading in the right direction. Have you faced this beast yourself? What was the cause and how did you turn it around? How many times do you think you've respawned?

So it looks like I'm finally starting to break through my weight loss plateau. I had a weigh-in today with my trainer (we do body fat % and weight once a month) and I am down 4lbs from my last weigh in! Finally. I've been stuck around the same number since May! Let's hope the scale keeps moving.

Aloha~ I'm Zuri Wynter but you may call me Zuri for name's sake. I had started my fitness journey exactly a year ago and lost 30 pounds, but hit a plateau upon getting very ill and now injuring my shoulder at a previous job. Since then, over the past three months, I've gained 10 to 15 of those pounds back and feel my progression has reached a dead halt. I've been lurking among the forums for quite a while before taking the plunge because even though I have all the tools I need at my fingertips, I lack the motivation to dive back in. I absolutely LOVE cardio -- there was a time where two hours between an elliptical and treadmill was a cake walk. So thanks to that, my lower body (i.e. thighs, calves, and feet) are sculpted to what I was seeking but I still battle with my top half (the back, belly, and upper arms). I hope with the help of this forum to get back into fitness like the inner nutcase I know I am and get back to reaching my personal goals. My biggest weaknesses include strength training (because my shoulder is still strained), motivation, and nutrition. I was notorious for skipping meals and not eating to cut corners, and that has led to quite a few health issues. If anyone can throw me some tips or tricks to working around a bum shoulder until it heals, I'd be more than grateful. I have a very close friend who has excellent ideas involving lightweight yoga balls and other things, but having more to the arsenal wouldn't hurt! Thanks for reading.

Hey all! I'm super excited to have found NF, and I'm really hoping some accountability will help me on my journey. A little (lot of) backstory? Ok, since you asked: 25 yr old female, 5' 8", about 158lbs, mother to the world's greatest cat, studying to be an optician while living in a funky 60's (read: falling apart) house with my nerdy partner-in-crime. I've ranged from "chubby" to "very overweight" through my life. My parents, although they are wonderful, have terrible eating habits, which I inherited. I've always been a nerd, and was more interested in staying inside and reading or drawing than getting any sort of excercise. The summer after I turned 21, I topped out at about 210lbs (Aug 2010). I remember getting on the scale and crying. I knew then that I had to change. Fast forward 8 months - I've moved out of my parent's house and away from the bad habits. Living in Boston, I'm working 2 jobs that keep me on my feet 14 hours a day, eating healthier, cutting down on my drinking, and walking almost everywhere. By the time Aug 2011 rolled around, I was down to about 155lbs and I felt great, had more confidence than ever and was sure my progress would continue. But as we all know. "sh*t happens" and sometimes life gets in the way. I injured my shoulder at one of my jobs, which limited my mobility and has turned into a chronic pain issue that still hasn't been resolved. I stopped working two highly active jobs and switched to a high-stress sedentary desk job. I moved out of the city and into the house in the sticks to live with the man I adore, which translated into not being able to walk to work/etc. It also doesn't help that he's the type who can eat everything in his path without gaining an ounce, so there's constantly the urge to get takeout or eat junk food with him. All of these things combined and more have contributed to the plateau that I'm still currently on. Last year I gained a little of the weight back, and promptly panicked. It was a wake-up call for me to get myself back on the right track. I am still in a much better position than when I started - job that I love, better eating habits and the knowledge that I DON'T actually hate excercise. Ok, now that I've rambled about my entire life, here's the good part: FITNESS GOALS! 1. Work out 3-5x a week continuously for a month 1b. Work out 3-5x a week continuously for 6 months 2. Run a 5k in <33 minutes by July 3. Lose 3in off of my current measurements 4. Get my diet to 80%-20% by tracking everything I eat every day 5. Pizza no more than once a week! (sob) Right now my major motivation is just to break out of the rut that I seem to be stuck in. I've got my ideas of where I want to be by my Lvl 50, so the first step is just getting past Lvl 1. If you've made it this far, thanks! I'd love to hear anyone's ideas or constructive criticism

For a long time now I've been building up my back squat getting close to 100kg and then getting injured or some other circumstances have stopped me getting there. I've tested multiple times and made numerous attempts at 100 but never made it, much to my frustration. But I've persevered and today I finally got the 100kg back squat I have been trying to get for over a year In fact I blew past it and got 105kg! (231 pounds) Feels so great to finally make it into the 100 club and reach a long term goal

Herro! So basically I've lost 40 pounds right? I've kept it off for a year and recently over four months ago started weight lifting. I've hit a plateau on my weight loss, and I know the scale isn't supposed to be a guide but I'm definitely not where I want to be physically. YES I'm talking aesthetics, jesus. My starting weight was 193, I'm currently hovering around 150-153. I've never hit the 140s, and I'm becoming EXTREMELY frustrated. I keep buggering off and eating like, 4000cals in one day over the weekend. I started getting into the habit of counting everything on MFP so wicked fun awesome good times. I've been steady at 150 baby! First time ever. I'll be keeping track of my workouts on here because I'm actually terrible at documenting my weight lifting sessions. Also I'll post my food too just for kicks but here's the link for my MFP account, add me as a friend Goodluck to everyone on this cold frosty day (I'm in Canada, eh.) I'll post later with my totals once I'm done at the gym. x

Hello, fellow rebels. I am a 22-year-old male, 67 kg bodyweight. I have been doing the stronglifts 5x5 program for the past three months and have seen some impressive gains. I started from an empty barbell and here is the weight I can currently move, inclusive of the bar weight: Squat - 55 kg Bench press - 50 kg Deadlift - 85 kg Rows - 55 kg Overhead press - 30 kg I know some of those weights are disproportionate, and although these stats may be irrelevant, I thought of including them just in case they may indicate any sort of imbalance that I need to work on. Anyway, to the point. Lately, for the past one week, I have noticed that I am hitting plateaus. I had to decrease my bench press weight from 55 to 52.5 and then to 50 kg because I was getting caught into a lockout. My form is correct, I am eating right and enough, and I am taking a day off between each training day. Just today, I had to fall back from the 57.5 kg that I was supposed to attempt today to 55 kg, and yet, I found myself struggling with even 4 reps. I eventually had to settle for 3x6 for squats. I am not sure what is happening here, since I've read almost everywhere that beginners get very rapid gains and hitting a plateau is very uncommon. I might be overtraining, but I get adequate rest and don't have any symptoms of burning out either physically, emotionally or mentally. I know I should b going back to a lighter weight again and not rush myself, but I just need to know if this is normal for beginners, since this is quite a bummer. Edit: 6x3, not 3x6

So usually in one week these past 4 months, my weight would go down 2 lbs then go back up 1 lb, go down 2 lbs and so on and so on. I wouldn't say I use the scale to gauge progress, but more to track patterns in regard to my eating habits. 3 weeks ago I noticed that my weight hadn't changed at all for a solid week without a change in food intake and didn't know what had caused it. Since I had increased my cardio and lifting, I decided to increase my calories thinking my body was going into starvation mode; weight still stayed the same. IT DROVE ME BONKERS!!! In trying to keep my sanity, I took about a 2 week break from scale. The fucker wasn't doing me any good anyway, so had to pawn it off on my brother for safe keeping. So instead of using the scale to monitor my progress, I have been taking pictures of myself at my gym after my work outs and lifting. Although I saw changes and my clothes still are becoming looser on me, that nagging bitch of a voice would always pop in my head "yeah, but what does the scale say?" - "SHUT IT, CUNT! I worked too damn hard to just give up now!" Anyway, to subside my curiosity I got back on the scale yesterday and dropped another 2 lbs, finally breaking the plateau I've been on for the last 3 weeks. Point being and what I'm taking from this is to be more humble about the changes I am making. Up until 3 weeks ago, I was cocky about what I was doing because it was getting me the progress that I wanted up until this point. The first set back (for this go-around at least) and I pushed through it even when I was completely discouraged, it's made me feel stronger and more confident that I can persevere when I am challenged whether it's physically or mentally. That's my WOOT WOOT!!!

Or a "Derp!" moment, depending on how you look at it. I've been actively working on losing fat and building muscle while eating paleo and have been around the same composition for a couple weeks now. Since January, I've lost 14 lbs and have gone from approximately 27% body fat to 19-20%. As I was preparing a dinner of 3 eggs, 3 slices center cut bacon, spinach and mushrooms, I suddenly realized that maybe I should be cutting down on my portions now that my composition has changed. I've been eating the same things in roughly the same quantities for almost 3 whole months. I kinda felt like a dummy. >.< Then I put an egg and a slice of bacon back in the fridge. Am I on the right track here? Any input would be appreciated.

Hey everyone So I've been going to the gym for the better part of three weeks now, and so far I've been getting a pretty linear increase in performance. Been increasing weigth on every exercise (Deadlift, Squat, Benchpress) by 5kg (~10 pounds) per week. I'm also working towards the first pullup of my life, currently transitioning from Body Weigth Rows to Assisted Pullups/Inverted Pullups. So much for my general situation Now, I hit a plateau on the Benchpresses. I can do ~8reps with 40kg but I just can't increase that. I was thinking to start doing some pushup action (after reading about all the types of amazing pushups on artofmanlines) on my offdays. Beginning with 2sets of 5 and aiming towards maybe sets of 15-20? Is there anything else I can do? My BPs are now lagging behind DL by 20kg and the Squat by 15, I somehow want to keep my lifts at about the same weigth in the three categories.